Many vehicle drivers fail to heed warnings or to take proper safety precautions when traveling over uncontrolled railroad crossings. In 2009, there were 1,896 crashes at public railroad crossings in the United States, many with catastrophic consequences. More than 10% of these crashes were fatal, resulting in 247 deaths. The rate of fatal accidents at railroad crossings is significantly higher than the overall automobile accident fatality rate of 0.6%.
There are more than 250,000 public and private crossings in the United States. The sheer number of crossings makes the task of reducing and preventing railroad crossing crashes daunting. Of approximately 140,000 public at-grade crossings in the United States, fewer than half are equipped with traffic control devices, such as gates (31%), flashing lights (16%), traffic signals, wigwags, bells, or the like. Put another way, over the half (52%) of the public railroad crossings are not equipped with any traffic control devices at all. These uncontrolled crossings were, are, and continue to be a threat to public safety and health. It is cost-prohibitive to upgrade or install traffic control devices at all public crossings.